Monday, October 24, 2011

I was set home on Saturday morning with my boys. We saw the end of Young Justice. Then came on a Brave and the Bold. We have watched that before fun Batman stories. This one featured Captain Atom and the Justice League. Captain Atom acted like Booster Gold of the 90’s. Blah, Blah, Blah, things happened, Captain Atom acted like jerk. Then he lost his powers.

But don’t worry cape crusaders!!! Aquaman turns things around with….a full-blown musical number he calls "Aquaman's Rousing Song of Heroism". Leaving my family slightly stunned and on edge. I would have really preferred Batman hitting Captain Atom in the face.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Wonder Woman Day approaches. This is an amazing event where artwork from around the world is gathered together at Excalibur Comics. It is stunning to see the artwork cover every surface of your Local Comic Shop (LCS). This is occurring in NJ and Texas as well.(check the website for info)

"In October 2006-2010, five annual Wonder Woman Day events raised over $110,000 for Domestic Violence programs in Portland, Oregon and Flemington, NJ. The five-year combination of auctions of over 1,100 original art pieces, plus collectibles, autograph signings, and photo opportunities garnered spectacular turnouts and four Portland Mayoral Proclamations!"

"This year, the event will take on a new name and an expanded mission! On October 30, 2011, the new Women of Wonder Day - again as a part of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month - will take place, returning to Excalibur Books in Portland, Oregon, and Comic Fusion in Flemington, New Jersey, as well as at Heroes and Fantasies in San Antonio, Texas!"

"This year's contributions for auction include not only artwork featuring heroines from the world of comics - Wonder Woman, She-Hulk, Storm, Michonne from Walking Dead, Leetah from ElfQuest - but also from the world of media as well, including Lisbeth Salander, Buffy the Vampire Slayer ,

Hermione Granger, and others! Plus, TV series such as Glee, Nikita, Big Bang Theory, Castle, and others have donated special items as well! And the all-ages events will include artists and writers signing autographs at each event, as well as costumed characters with whom you can take photos! And in Portland, white-hot writer Brian Michael Bendis is auctioning off a role in one of his upcoming comics! "

Things From Another World in Portland welcomes creators from video game giant Valve Games November 12 from 7-10 p.m. Join Michael Avon Oeming (Powers), Andrea Wicklund, Ted Kosmatka, and Bay Raitt as they debut Valve Presents: The Sacrifice and Other Steam-Powered Stories from Dark Horse Comics, and purchase your copy before the official release date of November 16.

Not only will you enjoy complimentary food and beer (with valid ID), but also FREE in-store console and PC gaming courtesy of Ground Kontrol, Old Town Computers, and Valve. You might even win an original piece of Oeming's artwork from the book!

For 15 years, Valve has defined the cutting edge of video games. Now Valve joins Dark Horse Comics to bring three critically acclaimed, fan-favorite series to print in a hardcover collection of comics based on Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress, and Portal. With more than 200 pages of story, Valve Presents: The Sacrifice and Other Steam-Powered Stories is a must-read for fans looking to further explore the games they love, or comics readers interested in dipping their toes into new mythos!

Be sure to pick up your copy of Valve Presents: The Sacrifice and Other Steam-Powered Stories before it's available anywhere else! Meet the creators behind some of the most exciting games--and comics--in the world at TFAW in Portland November 12 from 7-10 p.m., and play games like Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress, and Portal 2

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Date: Thursday, October 20th @ 7:30PMLocation: Powell's Books on Hawthorne"In Jonathan Case's graphic novel Dear Creature (Tor), a creature named Grue broods deep beneath the waves. He no longer wants to eat lusty beachgoers, no matter how their hormones call
to him. A chorus of crabs urges him to reconsider. After all, people are
delicious! But this monster has changed. Grue found Shakespeare's plays
in cola bottles and, through them, a new heart. Now he yearns to join
the world above. "

Monday, October 17, 2011

Jeremy Barlow is a writer and freelance editor based in Portland, Oregon. We worked at Dark Horse Comics as an associate editor from 2001 to 2008. He is currently working on Kult, Dethlok and recently wrote a short story for Savage Sword of Conan. He has written several Star Wars and Star Wars the Clone Wars books. Also, Barlow wrote a number of stories under the pseudonym "Thomas Andrews".

Right now I have several original, creator-owned projects in varying states of progress -- a 1950s horror story; a heady '60s super spy adventure; a 70s sci-fi sex comedy; and a complex, Metabaron-esque science-fiction epic about the end of the universe. And I have Western kicking around in there somewhere, too.

As for paying work, I just finished writing a four-issue horror series called KULT for Dark Horse Comics, and I'm chronicling the continuing adventures of The Sonora Kid, an obscure Western character in Robert E. Howard's Savage Sword anthology. Also for Dark Horse.

DD: What is your artistic Process?

In the past, I'd start with my theme -- find whatever specific statement I wanted to make about whatever character or situation I was dealt -- and build out from there. I'd try to boil it all down to a sentence or two, something like "that which you fear the most becomes the only thing that can save your life," and then I'd take a long walk and figure out how to put my characters through an ordeal that expressed that idea in a way that clearly drove it home.

It's based on the way you're taught to construct a thesis argument in college, which worked very well for me in school, but I'm learning that that method doesn't always make for good storytelling. Having a solid, clearly defined theme is great for building your story's roadmap, which then helps you plan out all of the twists and to know exactly how everything's going to end up (which is important), but it also stifles the spontaneity.

Once a story starts rolling it often takes on a life of its own, pulling in directions you don't anticipate. If that happens when you're nailed down to a theme-specific, detailed outline, you have to yank the reins, which denies yourself -- and your characters -- the freedom to breath and let your world develop organically. Drama needs structure, but structure isn't drama.

I'm only recently coming to grips with this, after so many years of pounding my fist on the desk and declaring theme trumps all! Though, with few exceptions, I find my work to date to be generally unsatisfying and failing in areas where I know I'm strong, so I'm reexamining the way I approach my craft. Taking it apart and putting it back together in a way that better showcases my personality and perspective.

So I don't know what my process entails right now, or where this path is leading me, other than it feels like I'm on a better road now. Theme and structure are still important, but not if they're strangling a story's emotional honesty. And I've been very guilty of doing that.

DD: When you are writing, what is your process working with the artist?

It depends on the project. On most work-for-hire gigs, I have almost zero contact with the artist -- I write my scripts and either see the finished pages as a courtesy just as they're going to the printer, or I see the story for the first time when the book hits the rack. Some editors are good about showing me pages in the thumbnail and pencil stage and letting me have some feedback, and I really appreciate that. It'd be nice to change or move or rewrite dialogue after the pages are done, but with production schedules being as tight as they are, that's an unaffordable luxury.

Lately I've been paired with artists for whom English is not their primary language, and that's presented some interesting challenges. In those instances I have to be careful not to include American vernacular or idioms, and to be very clear and literal in what I'm describing. Which is fine, but my natural writing style is more relaxed and conversational, and I prefer to have a dialogue with my collaborators rather than issue marching orders, and I'll catch myself slipping.

Original, creator-owned material is a whole different ballgame. I'm fortunate to share a studio with my most recent collaborators -- Dustin Weaver and Ben Bates. Dustin and I produced a short western story for Image Comics' Outlaw Territory anthology which was released earlier this year. That started with "let's do a western together" and the process was very organic -- we both came in with ideas and characters and situations we wanted to use, and over the course of several, beer-fueled meetings we crafted our world. From there, I just had to write it all down and make it flow into our allotted page-count. By my usual standards that script was sparse; it was shorthand for a story we both knew by heart.

Ben Bates and I recently did a short story together called "The Stain", which was a script I'd written before I met Ben. Even though the story was already laid-out in type, Ben and I talked extensively about its execution and he brought a lot of himself to it and really elevated the final work.

Ben and I are working together on a few different things right now, using the same method as I described doing with Dustin above, and I much prefer that process to just scripting and hoping for the best.

DD: When you were editing what was your process working with the Creative team?

My experience was almost exclusively with licensed projects. It always came down to finding people I wanted to work with, or finding the earnest young talent out there and helping them break in. I have no patience for big egos, prima donna behavior, or lack of professionalism of any kind, especially not when there are so many gifted writers, artists, and colorists out there straining to get a foothold, so the process often began with me liking someone's published work and then tracking them down either online or at a convention to see if they were interested in doing something.

Once we were rolling, I viewed my role as project manager and creative facilitator. My job was to help the team find their story and then get out of the way and let them do it. I tried to assemble teams of like-minded people whose skills complimented each other, and then encourage an open collaboration. I like to think it worked…most of the time. I had a great relationship with almost everyone I worked with, though, and when I announced that I was leaving editing to write full time a lot of people asked me to reconsider, which was flattering.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

Everyone should read Alejandro Jodorowski and Juan Gimenez's The Saga of the Metabarons; and The White Lama, also by Jodorowski and George Bess. Both of those books changed my life. Locke & Key by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez is consistently amazing. I also try to put the first issue of Darwyn Cooke's The New Frontier into as many hands as I can. Can you beat The Losers on Dinosaur Island? No. You can't.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

I can't answer that without first getting to know the person and learning what interests them. The New Frontier could thrill one person and leave another cold. Better to understand your audience and adjust accordingly.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

I really, REALLY wish I could draw. It would make my professional life SO much easier. I love collaborating with other people, but my lack of artistic ability is a barrier to cranking out the stuff I want to do. No, actually, my reluctance to ask others for help is the true barrier. But still, if I could draw, I'd be set.

The funny thing is -- and do you ever notice when someone says something's "funny" like that, it usually isn't? -- my teenage dream was to be a comic book artist. I used to draw all the time, but I was cocky. I thought I was too talented to need any kind of training or to learn the "boring crap" like understanding perspective or how light sources work. I just wanted to draw characters shooting lightning at each other.

When I was nineteen I repeatedly submitted to a company in Salt Lake City that specialized in publishing amateur genre comics -- and I was rejected every time, always on the basis of my sub-par art skills. The editors were gracious, sending me detailed, sometimes panel by panel critiques, and encouraged me to keep sending stuff in. They also praised my writing and suggested I partner with another artist. I took that as a sign and moved my focus to writing. Alas.

DD: What's the most important thing you've learned?

To be honest with who am I and what I have to say, to trust my own process and path, and to not fall into the trap of comparing myself to others.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?

A comics collection? No. I have a closet full of short boxes and several shelves piling up with trade paperbacks, but I don't view that as collecting so much as compiling. There are a few comics runs I'm glad I own -- Grimjack, Starman, an almost complete set of Weird Western/Jonah Hex/Hex/ect., but everything else is just the pamphlets I've accumulated over the years that I can't get myself to recycle in case I'll need them for reference someday. I look forward to the day when I can have all of that material on a hard drive.

That said, I do collect obscure Italian Western DVDs, and I'm proud of that library. I don't care much for American westerns, but I LOVE what the Europeans did with the genre in the '60s and '70s, taking a uniquely American mythology and running through their cultural filters and producing something else entirely. Fortunately there are a few small companies out there devoted to recovering, restoring, and releasing these obscure films in short runs on DVD, and my library is up to around 60-70 movies. There's been a fantastic wave of Asian Westerns lately, too. I can't get enough.

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

I like a little bit of everything. As long as its character-driven and shows me a unique world or a fresh perspective, I'm happy. I long to find a bizarre, well-executed, straight-up western, though. None of this genre mash-up, cowboys and zombies stuff you see all the time, but where the horror instead comes from the twisted characters and the surreal settings. Solid westerns are few and far between, though…so I'll have to do it myself.

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

I do have an iPad, and it's used primarily for reading comics. Digital is the future of comics, and I embrace it wholeheartedly.

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

I discovered The Prisoner at age fourteen and it changed my life. It's still my absolute favorite, but I also enjoy The Twilight Zone, and I'm loving Justified right now. We'll see if it holds up. There's almost too much good television right now -- right now I have Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, Firefly, and Dr. Who (none of which I've seen) and an anime series based on the manga Monster all queued up for Netflix instant streaming…and I have no idea when I'll find the time to watch them all.

My favorite movie is The Fall.

DD: How does the Portland comics culture shapes your work?

It's exhilarating. Nowhere else in the country can you be surrounded by so many others chasing the same dream, who challenge you to do your best work, but also support you and want to see you succeed. It's no exaggeration to say that joining Periscope Studio saved me -- my first couple of years freelancing were rough, I wasn't used to the isolation, got lost in my own head, and almost had a crisis of faith in whether I was meant to do what I wanted to do. Joining Periscope and surrounding myself with talented, good people who were struggling up the same mountain turned everything around.

DD: What was your first comic convention?

Comic-Con International in San Diego, 1995. A group of friends and I pooled our resources and shared a cheap hotel room, all intent on 'breaking in' into the industry, but not doing much more to achieve those ends than partying all night and raising hell on the convention floor all day. From there it took me about a decade to get serious.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

Hanging out with the long-distance friends and colleagues that I otherwise only speak with via email.

It's also always gratifying to meet people who've read and connected with your work. Writing is a solitary exercise and it's easy to lose connection with the outside world, so it's nice to be reminded that you're not just working in a void.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

Do you mean if I wasn't writing? If I weren't doing comics, I'd be working in another medium—ideally novels, but probably video games. If I weren't writing professionally, I'd be trying to make it as a musician. Or still working at an auto quick-lube. Or both.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

I'm a simple guy, and if my metabolism could handle it I'd eat at Buster's Barbeque five days a week. Beau Thai and Swagat Indian Cuisine on NW 23rd are both pretty great, too.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

My wife and I moved out here from Spokane, Washington in 2001, just after getting married. She had a job offer and I knew I'd eventually be working from a laptop, so the 'where' didn't matter. Once we decided on Portland, I landed a job at Dark Horse Comics and everything unfolded from there.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?

So many great things here -- the food, the people, the music, the creative community. I love it all. I hate the wet and dreary winters, though. Hate them. I grew up in a high desert climate with extreme seasons and the sun practically year round, and these constant dark skies kill me. If I could lift all of Portland and move it to Arizona or southern Utah (shaking off the hipsters along the way, of course), it'd be paradise. I'll have to settle for it being just plain awesome instead.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

I can't believe I haven't been to Crater Lake yet. I need to do something about that. I'd like to hit Ashland's Shakespeare Festival sometime, too.

DD: Would you like to write/Illustrate for another media? Or write a character from another media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

I'm much more interested in creating new material than I am in extending someone else's properties. Yes, I understand the irony in making my living doing work-for-hire on existing licenses, but that's the nature of the industry right now. Discovering new music or reading a great book for the first time are wonderful feelings, and that's what I strive to deliver. Too much of contemporary popular culture, with its endless remakes and reboots, is focused on keeping a chokehold on one's childhood, and that baffles me. I loved Star Wars as much anyone, but what's next? My generation is experiencing some seriously stunted development.

After more than a decade of anticipation, Star Wars: Crimson Empire returns with the original creative team! October 26, meet writer and Dark Horse President Mike Richardson, artist Paul Gulacy, and editor Randy Stradley at the Hollywood Things From Another World (TFAW) from 7:00-10:00 pm and celebrate the release of Star Wars: Crimson Empire III-Empire Lost #1 from Dark Horse Comics. Complimentary food and beer (with valid ID) will be provided.

The reach of the New Republic is expanding, but the days of fighting for the galaxy have not ended. A threat against Princess Leia and Han Solo's family disrupts usual business on Coruscant--and Luke Skywalker's Jedi training on Yavin 4!

"Star Wars: Crimson Empire has always held a special place in our hearts," said TFAW Marketing Manager Elisabeth Forsythe. "Its return will let fans catch up with a lot of beloved characters!"

Mike Richardson, who founded Dark Horse Comics in 1986, is no stranger to writing comics, having scripted the first Crimson Empire series as well as the original horror graphic novels Cut and The Secret. Eagle Award-winning artist Paul Gulacy has been a mainstay of the comics industry for nearly four decades, lending his talents to The Terminator, Batman, and more. Senior Editor Randy Stradley, in addition to being a founding employee of Dark Horse Comics, has been the editor for the publisher's entire Star Wars line for more than a decade.

Meet the creators, purchase your copy of Star Wars: Crimson Empire III-Empire Lost #1 and get it signed (including the Paul Gulacy variant-cover edition), pose in front of our green screen, and enjoy free beer (21+, with valid ID) and food October 26. Plus, stay tuned for more announcements at Twitter.com/TFAW!

About Things From Another World:Founded in 1979, Things From Another World is the premier retailer of comic books, toys, collectibles, and pop-culture geek goodness, both in Portland, Oregon and online at http://www.TFAW.com.

About Dark Horse Comics:Since 1986, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent like Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Gerard Way and comics legend Will Eisner, Dark Horse has developed such successful characters as The Mask, Timecop, and SpyBoy. Additionally, their highly successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan, Emily the Strange, Tim Burton, Trigun, Serenity and Domo. Today, Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic-book publisher in the U.S. and is recognized as one of the world's leading publishers of licensed comics material.

Following Cort and Fatboys incredibly popular screenings of The Walking Dead Season
1, they are proud to announce that we are sponsoring free screenings of The
Walking Dead Season 2 at the Hollywood Theatre, hosted by local
luminaries Cort & Fatboy, beginning October 16.

Need more
excitement? Come to our pre-party across the street at the Hollywood
TFAW at 4133 NE Sandy Blvd., from 7:00-8:30 pm for snacks, zombie
trivia, and prizes from SKYBOUND, the Image Comics imprint behind The
Walking Dead.

Even better: the Hollywood Theatre is now serving
beer to patrons who are 21 and older, with valid ID. Pre-party and door
prizes are courtesy of SKYBOUND! For the full screening schedule, stay
tuned to this Facebook page!

On Friday, Oct. 21 from 6 to 9 p.m., MIKE RUSSELL ("Sabertooth Vampire") joins forces with AARON DURAN and JAMES SINCLAIR ("La Brujeria") for a blowout Issue 2 release party at Bridge City Comics.

The creators are teaming up to roll out the second issues of their comics -- "The Sabertooth Vampire" and "La Brujeria."

Writer Aaron Duran and artist James Sinclair (a colorist on "Hellboy" and "The Flash"), joined by editor/letterer Jennifer Alvin, will sign Issue #2 of "La Brujeria" -- their supernatural comedy about Althalia, a "gifted" temp who gets a job at a pawn shop that's actually a front for a team of supernatural investigators. In the new issue, Golden Bought Pawn takes a job under Portland's streets as mystical powers rise to shake the city to its foundations. See why Mark L. Miller of Ain't It Cool News said "LA BRUJERIA is definitely something I want to read more of."

Meanwhile, Mike Russell signs "Sabertooth Vampire Unleashed," which collects Season Two of Russell's webcomic about a tiny vampire hampered by his oversized fangs. Will he pull his teeth out of the ground long enough to actually bite someone? Probably not. Over 56 pages, Season Two frequently contradicts itself as Russell dives into the Saber-Vamp's personal life -- his awkward teenage years, his stints as King Arthur and a caveman, his solo dance parties, and his awkward trip around the world after someone mistakes him for a garden gnome. Lauren Davis of io9.com called the comic "an amazing bit of silliness.... Yes, it's a one-note joke, but damn if Russell doesn't milk it for all it's worth."

Bridge City Comics is proud to announce our Dear Creature Release Party with Jonathan Case on Friday, October 14, 2011 from 6pm – 9pm! This event is free to the public. Jonathan will be in attendance to sign autographs but offering sketches will be at his discretion.

Join us to celebrate the release of TWO great books from local artist Jonathan Case! Jonathan illustrated Dark Horse Comics critically-acclaimed Green River Killer: A True Detective Story (released August 2011) and we’re also celebrating the release of the book he wrote and illustrated, Dear Creature from Tor Books!

Bridge City Comics will have copies of Dear Creature ($15.99) and Green River Killer: A True Detective Story ($24.99) on hand for purchase during the event, as well as a special, limited event-only print created by Jonathan Case!

About Dear Creature: Grue has found Shakespeare's plays in cola bottles and, through them, a new heart. Now he yearns to join the world above. When he finds love in the arms of Giulietta, a woman trapped in her own world, he believes his prayers are answered. But people have gone missing and Giulietta's nephew is the prime suspect. With his past catching up to him, Grue must decide if becoming a new man means ignoring the monster he was. Rising from a brine of drive-in pulp and gentle poetry, Dear Creature is the love story you never imagined!

About Green River Killer: Throughout the 1980s, the highest priority of Seattle-area police was the apprehension of the Green River Killer, the man responsible for the murders of dozens of women. In 1990, with the body count numbering at least forty-eight, the case was put in the hands of a single detective, Tom Jensen. After twenty years, when the killer was finally captured with the help of DNA technology, Jensen spent 180 days interviewing Gary Leon Ridgway in an effort to learn his most closely held secrets--an epic confrontation with evil that proved as disturbing and surreal as can be imagined. Written by Jensen's own son, acclaimed entertainment writer Jeff Jensen, Green River Killer: A True Detective Story presents the ultimate insider's account of America's most prolific serial killer.